Blue Diamond Scarcity Drives Price Rise

RAPAPORT... Blue diamond prices climbed in the third quarter due to
lower supply, according to the Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF).

The price of fancy blue diamonds grew 4.7% year on year in the three months ending September 30. They also rose 0.4% from the second quarter, the organization said in a statement Tuesday.

The Fancy Color Diamond Index, which tracks prices of yellow, pink
and blue diamonds in Hong Kong, New York and Tel Aviv, showed an overall
decline of 0.2% year on year for all the fancy-color categories, with
prices increasing 0.2% from the previous quarter.

“As far as supply is concerned, 2017 and the year before
were record-low years for blue fancy-color diamond production from mines,” said
Eden Rachminov, chairman of the FCRF’s advisory board.

“The majority of the blues that are coming into the market
are pre-owned stones. Manufacturers have seen a significant drop in
availability across all sizes and qualities, and consequently prices have
continued to increase,” he added.

Prices of fancy yellow diamonds slipped 2.5% year on year and were 0.1% lower than in the second quarter. Prices of pinks fell 0.6%
compared with last year, and edged up 0.3% from the previous quarter.